Is this fusarium or not?

[Sandy Loam]

This photo was taken today. I clipped this frond off a small queen palm, thinking that it was merely an aging frond that was turning yellow ---- and then I noticed the green side/yellow side pattern.

Could it simply be that this frond just happened to become necrotic in this pattern, but that it is not actually attributable to fusarium wilt?  Do I need to dispose of this tree immediately?  There are plenty of other queen palms nearby.

 

Your input is valued. Thanks.

[PalmatierMeg]

Looks like it to me. See my photo from 2015 below. If you have doubts wait a bit to see if more leaves succumb. This lethal disease kills within weeks. And if it is wilt, you need to cut down and dispose of all debris ASAP. I did but still couldn't save all my queens, mules and Washy. Within 18 months I lost them all.

[Sandy Loam]

Hi PalmatierMeg.  On that advice (unless I hear differently from someone else on PalmTalk ASAP), I plan to rip out this small queen next weekend.  My concern is all of the other queen Palms which are just a few feet away.  If Fusarium can get into soil (like Ganoderma), then it may be too late for my entire property.  Can it?  Does anyone know?

[PalmatierMeg]

I don't think anyone quite knows how it spreads but I suspect several ways: insect vectors, by air, by ground, by infected pruning tools. I do know that all the palms I lost were in a densely planted 40' x 85' area and died over an 18-month period. Some had never been pruned. So I've given up planting all Syagrus even though all my other species elsewhere are still healthy as is the huge queen x flexuosa hybrid in my back yard jungle. But a month or so ago, we noticed one of the queens in the back yard of our neighbor around the corner had died and looked suspiciously like a wilt-killed palm. Neighbor said it had died suddenly which is also suspicious. He took it out but I am watching his several other queens for signs. This is 3 years after we cut down all our queens and 2 years after our Washy croaked. Neighbor lives about 30-40 yards from that.

I'm not saying you should act based on what just I say but no one else has chimed in. If I were you, I'd yank out the queen and dispose of or burn it, then wait and pray. My experience over those 2-3 years is that the disease is likely present and spreading within the trunks of affected palms for quite a while - it affects parts of the trunk that relay water and nutrients. By the time obvious symptoms show the palm is riddled with pathogen and collapses within a few weeks.

Sorry.

[PalmTreeDude]

Definitely clean any room very well before you use them on other palms, I have heard of many palms die after being pruned with tools that were used to prune or cut down infected palms.

[Sandy Loam]

But is it possible that some palms simply necrotize on one side before the other side of the frond is affected?  Is that pattern necessarily an indicator of Fusarium Wilt, or can it simply be a natural progression for older fronds as they turn yellow and then Brown?  The frond in my photo above was the one on the tree, so it was probably getting ready to go soon anyway.   Thoughts, anyone?

[kinzyjr]

@Sandy Loam The yellowing on one side of the frond is a tell-tale sign of this disease.  This is unfortunate, but I agree @PalmatierMeg and @PalmTreeDude.  Remove the offending palm ASAP, sterilize your tools, and cross your fingers that it doesn't jump to the other susceptible palms in your collection.

[Palmsbro]

4 hours ago, Sandy Loam said:

But is it possible that some palms simply necrotize on one side before the other side of the frond is affected?  Is that pattern necessarily an indicator of Fusarium Wilt, or can it simply be a natural progression for older fronds as they turn yellow and then Brown?  The frond in my photo above was the one on the tree, so it was probably getting ready to go soon anyway.   Thoughts, anyone?

I haven't seen one yet which has died on just one side without it being fusarium/infection, and I agree with @kinzyjr on this one 100%.

I'm pretty sure you didn't get the jackpot and find the only known non-infected frond that naturally died like that.

@

I completely understand not wanting to dispose of a palm like this, but it appears that it will die and you will need to.

[Sandy Loam]

Ok. I will dispose of the palm, but now I am concerned because it was just one of several queen palms that I purchased at the same time from HD.  Did it "catch" the Fusarium from the grower? ...from HD?  ...from my own property?  If the Fusarium came from HD, then maybe all of those queen palms already have Fusarium, but it simply hasn't manifested itself in the others yet because it is still dormant (?)  I have never had Fusarium in my backyard before, although I did have it way up in the front yard (quite far away) in two CIDPs a couple of years ago.  Those CIDPs may have had Fusarium when they first arrived from HD because I didn't have them for long. 

Several other palms in my subdivision have also died suddenly, but they were all Washingtonia Robusta and a Phoenix Canariensis or two. Did I read somewhere that they are attacked by a different fusarium anyway? 

Should I also excavate a large area of soil from the rootball when I throw this palm out?

One last thing --- After removing the frond in the photo, I proceeded to chop off several Chinese fan palms with that same tool.  However, livistona chinensis are completely unharmed by fusarium anyway, correct?

Thanks, everyone.

[Palmsbro]

17 minutes ago, Sandy Loam said:

Livistona chinensis are completely unharmed by fusarium anyway, correct?

6 hours ago, Sandy Loam said:

 

Supposedly.

It's still a bad idea to prune palms in succession without cleansing between chopping fronds (on different palms).

21 minutes ago, Sandy Loam said:

Ok. I will dispose of the palm, but now I am concerned because it was just one of several queen palms that I purchased at the same time from HD.  Did it "catch" the Fusarium from the grower? ...from HD?  ...from my own property?  If the Fusarium came from HD, then maybe all of those queen palms already have Fusarium, but it simply hasn't manifested itself in the others yet because it is still dormant (?)  I have never had Fusarium in my backyard before, although I did have it way up in the front yard (quite far away) in two CIDPs a couple of years ago.  Those CIDPs may have had Fusarium when they first arrived from HD because I didn't have them for long. 

Several other palms in my subdivision have also died suddenly, but they were all Washingtonia Robusta and a Phoenix Canariensis or two. Did I read somewhere that they are attacked by a different fusarium anyway? 

Should I also excavate a large area of soil from the rootball when I throw this palm out?

One last thing --- After removing the frond in the photo, I proceeded to chop off several Chinese fan palms with that same tool.  However, livistona chinensis are completely unharmed by fusarium anyway, correct?

Thanks, everyone.

I'm pretty sure that it is the same fusarium that attacks Washingtonias and Phoenix palms.

Getting red of the rootball should be done if possible.

[Sandy Loam]

Hmmm --- and when I do that, I suppose I should hose the shovel down as well, shouldn't I? 

[PalmatierMeg]

Where the palm got wilt and whether the others from HD are infected is a moot point right now. Get rid of the diseased palm and wait on the others. But I strongly suggest you not invest in any more queens, mules or Washies. If wilt has been introduced into your yard they would also be doomed.

Don't just hose off your shovel/pruning tools. Disinfect them with bleach & water.

[Keith N Tampa (ex SoJax)]

Fusarium gets P canariensis and sylvestris too.  Washies get rachis blight that looks like Fusarium but isn’t lethal, though it is ugly. If pruning tools spread Fusarium, well I’m going to lose a lot of palms.  And that might be the case.  We have TPPD in the yard too.  Did I mention how i’m Planting Only palms that haven’t gotten TPPD or Fusarium wilt yet?  Some of them are in the genus Bambusa, others are sometimes called Cycads.  . Palms are having a hard time these days.  Livistona and Beccariophoenix do seem to be okay.  I haven’t heard of Butia being affected either.

[Sandy Loam]

Some of my newer Mule Palms look like they have more Butia Odorata in them than my older Mule Palm.  I have no idea, but I wonder whether a Mule Palm which has more of the Butia traits will also carry some of the Butia resistance to Fusarium Wilt.

 

Have the scientists ascertained (or at least speculated) on how Fusarium travels?  If palms that have never been pruned are getting it, and those palms have never come into physical contact with the source infected ones, doesn't that tend to suggest that it spreads through nearby soil, like Ganoderma?  I am just guessing, but would love to know whether there is a conclusive scientific opinion on this.

I removed the infected queen palm today and tried to remove a fair amount of the surrounding soil.  However, there are healthy mules and Queens only a yard or two from the spot where the infected queen was located.  There is also a (likely) phoenix reclinata/theophrasi hybrid closeby as well.  If the Fusarium spreads through soil, t is only a matter of time until they become infected.  What a shame!

 

[Tropicdoc]

So.... which palms are susceptible to this plague? Just curious to know if I am at risk down here.

[Sandy Loam]

Hi Tropicdoc.  Someone will correct me if I am wrong, but the Palms which I know to be susceptible to Fusarium Wilt are:

- at least two types of syagrus

- phoenix, at least canariensis and sylvestris.  There is also something killing phoenix reclinata in Florida (occasionally, in patches), but it might be Texas Phoenix Palm Decline (TPPD) or something else.

- washingtonia robusta (and I assume filifera, but I am not sure because we can't grow that species here)

- Mule Palms because of their syagrus progeny

- I am not sure, but I think Bismarckia are safe.

However, if you don't have Fusarium in your region, you don't have to worry about it. Florida has so many palm trees everywhere that it has spread in some regions.  Louisiana may not be the same at all.

Your hybrid Butia x Parajubaea and Butia x jubaea are safe anyway. 

For your zone 9a, you won't have to worry about it if you plant palms like livistona (including the cold-hardy ones like chinensis, saribus, nitida, mariae, Decora, rigida), Sabal Palmetto, arenga engleri, allagoptera arenaria, rhapis excelsa, trachycarpus, chamaerops, Chamaedorea microspadix and radicalis, etc.  When you get down as far south as zone 9b and warmer, people do not appear to be as alarmed about Fusarium in general because there are so many other types of palms that can be grown down there.  For example, all of those 9b and 10a crownshaft palms do not seem to be affected by Fusarium, although they will not be a viable long-term option in Houma.

[Keith N Tampa (ex SoJax)]

9 hours ago, Tropicdoc said:

So.... which palms are susceptible to this plague? Just curious to know if I am at risk down here.

Here’s a scientific publication with facts.  It may not be all the facts...but these are right.

http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pp278

here is the article on TPPD.

http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pp163

bottomline, don’t plant Phoenix (especially canariensis and sylvestris), Washies, Sabal palmetto or queens here in the central FL plague zone.  Never mind that those palms make up 70%+ of the Palms readily available, and widely grown/growing here.  

I don’t know of either disease being detected in Louisiana at this time.  But, if you come here and buy palms, don’t take any of those species back home.  And, I wouldn’t buy them from the big box stores either since we don’t know how the diseases are dispersed. Neither disease is carried in the seed so if you raise your own, that should reduce risk.  

[Sandy Loam]

Interesting.  This publication indicates that TPPD is spread through a phytoplasma which is transmitted by insects feeding on the plant.  In short, TPPD is not spread through soil or airborne spores, thank goodness.  I wonder if there is a pesticide that could target these inspects and be creamy or solid enough to stay applied to the crown area, even in stormy weather.  If such a thing existed and could be applied, say, monthly, it might deter the insects who want to suck the plant's sap as they walk over the pesticide.  (They might be dead a few minutes later)  I know --- there are lot of people out there who do not advocate for using any pesticide under any circumstance for environmental reasons. 

I am not so concerned about TPPD because it seems that Fusarium is the more likely culprit in my region.  Fusarium remains a mystery as to how it spreads.  The publication posted by Keith, above, states:      

"Based on observations in Florida, the pathogen appears to be spread primarily by airborne spores (conidia) moved by wind, and possibly birds or insects."

and

"It is not known exactly how the fungus spreads so widely in the landscape, but wind-blown spores are strongly suspected as a primary method. Local transmission of the fungus from palm to palm is possibly caused by contaminated pruning tools."

I therefore can't be sure about the fungus spreading through soil even.   However, if it's airborne spores, I am in trouble.  If spores are the problem, what can we do? Do we simply remove the infected palm instantly, at the earliest sign of Fusarium?  Is that all?  If so, it might be too little, too late. 

Right now, I have a larger queen palm whose older fronds are strangely becoming necrotic at the tips first (last 12 inches or so of the old fronds).  Is that normal?  In the past, I haven't noticed this, but maybe I was simply not paying attention.  That palm's older fronds are NOT doing the half-necrotic/half-healthy thing, so it doesn't look like fusarium to me. 

 

[Palmsbro]

3 hours ago, Sandy Loam said:

Interesting.  This publication indicates that TPPD is spread through a phytoplasma which is transmitted by insects feeding on the plant.  In short, TPPD is not spread through soil or airborne spores, thank goodness.  I wonder if there is a pesticide that could target these inspects and be creamy or solid enough to stay applied to the crown area, even in stormy weather.  If such a thing existed and could be applied, say, monthly, it might deter the insects who want to suck the plant's sap as they walk over the pesticide.  (They might be dead a few minutes later)  I know --- there are lot of people out there who do not advocate for using any pesticide under any circumstance for environmental reasons. 

I am not so concerned about TPPD because it seems that Fusarium is the more likely culprit in my region.  Fusarium remains a mystery as to how it spreads.  The publication posted by Keith, above, states:      

"Based on observations in Florida, the pathogen appears to be spread primarily by airborne spores (conidia) moved by wind, and possibly birds or insects."

and

"It is not known exactly how the fungus spreads so widely in the landscape, but wind-blown spores are strongly suspected as a primary method. Local transmission of the fungus from palm to palm is possibly caused by contaminated pruning tools."

I therefore can't be sure about the fungus spreading through soil even.   However, if it's airborne spores, I am in trouble.  If spores are the problem, what can we do? Do we simply remove the infected palm instantly, at the earliest sign of Fusarium?  Is that all?  If so, it might be too little, too late. 

Right now, I have a larger queen palm whose older fronds are strangely becoming necrotic at the tips first (last 12 inches or so of the old fronds).  Is that normal?  In the past, I haven't noticed this, but maybe I was simply not paying attention.  That palm's older fronds are NOT doing the half-necrotic/half-healthy thing, so it doesn't look like fusarium to me. 

 

I wouldn't worry too much about your older palm unless younger leaves start dying off or you get the 'fusarium pattern'.

If airborne spores are the problem, then...

Yeah, I have no idea of what to do if that is the case.